The Saver
by JohnnyLove
Summary: What if Sakura didn't want to become a ninja? What if someone saved Naruto from his loneliness when he was younger? What if Sasuke had found something more important to him than his revenge? Kakashi understood that she was their saver, she was the one that brought them together and saved them from the darkness. OOC
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own Naruto :)**

**.**

'_He is here again_.' thought the small pink-haired girl as she walked further in the park. She stopped when she was a few meters in front of the swing where a boy with blond hair was sitting. He was looking down, lost deep in his thoughts and didn't notice her.

"Do you want me to push you?" asked the pinkette. The boy was startled by her question and almost fell down from his seat. When he steadied himself, he looked at the girl with eyes full of fear and sadness.

"I mean on the swing. Do you want me to push you on the swing?" repeated the girl. She was standing calm, patiently waiting for his answer with small smile on her face.

"What? Why would you want to play with me?" his perplexity was clear in his voice. Why would anyone want to go near him? Everybody thought of him as a demon. They all hated him.

"Well you don't look like you are having a lot of fun by yourself so I decided to help you" declared the girl in her soft voice.

"Help me with what?" asked suspiciously the young boy.

"Help you to smile"

There was silence for a few minutes. Both children stayed in their places, not moving, just looking at each other. The boy couldn't believe that someone wanted to play with him. His entire life he was shunned by the villagers. They would yell at him, hit him or just ignore him. And now this girl wanted to push him on the swing. For a moment he felt happiness filling his soul, but then a sad thought struck him.

"Your parents won't be happy if you stay near me." his eyes were full with sadness.

"I don't have parents." said the girl as she sat down on swing next to his.

"I don't have any too." his blue eyes were looking more confidently at the pinkette.

"My name is Haruno Sakura." smiled again the small girl as she stood up from the swing so she could bow in greeting. Her formality surprised the young boy and he too stood up.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" shouted the blond. '_Maybe she will be my first friend_' thought Naruto already feeling excited. "Can I call you Sakura-chan?"

"Yes, you can Naruto." smiled Sakura. She was sure that this was the beginning of a strong friendship.

"Hey Sakura-chan, I will push you first on the swing and then you will push me!" the boy didn't wait for her reaction as he took her hand and led her to the wooden seat. Sakura simply nodded her head and took the rope of the swing in her hands. Naruto went behind her and pushed on her back with two hands. Her laughter filled the air as the wind played with her pink hair.

When he heard her laughing with glee, Naruto couldn't keep the smile from his face.

**~A few hours later~**

Two figures were lying on the grass under a big tree – one had pink hair and the other was blond.

"Naruto-kun, what is your dream?" asked Sakura as she turned her head to look at him.

"To become a Hokage! One day I will become the strongest ninja in Konoha and everyone will acknowledge me." Naruto jumped and pushed his fist in the air with huge grin on his face.

"That's a great dream to have, Naruto-kun." smiled happily the pinkette.

"Do you want to become a ninja, Sakura-chan?"questioned the boy as he sat cross-legged on the ground.

The girl sat across him, putting her hands behind her back. "No, I don't want to."

"Eeeh! Then what is your dream?" Naruto couldn't understand why she didn't want to become a ninja. '_Why someone won't want to become a hero?_' thought the blond.

"I want to save people" said the young girl.

"Then you will become a medic?"

"Hmm, I don't know. You can help people even if you aren't a medic Naruto-kun. We will just have to wait and see how the future turns out." replied Sakura in calm voice.

"But I don't like waiting" said back stubbornly Naruto and then started laughing as a butterfly landed on Sakura's nose, startling the girl.

**~A week later~**

"What do you want to do today Sakura-chan?" the two kids were yet again sitting under the shadow of a big tree in the park. They had just finished their bento boxes that the pink-haired girl had brought for lunch.

"Do you know him, Naruto-kun?" asked Sakura as she pointed at a dark-haired boy. He was walking with head bent towards the ground and hands in his pockets.

"We are in the same class at the Academy, but I don't know his name. I heard some kid saying that his family was killed a few months ago." replied Naruto sadly.

"Let's go and talk to him." said Sakura.

"Why?"

"To ask him if he wants to play with us." The girl said back as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Play with us?! But Sakura-chan, don't you want to play with me anymore?" asked Naruto. '_Maybe she already got bored of me_ '

"Of course I want to play with you! Don't you dare think otherwise Naruto-kun! But don't you thing that he will feel better if he has some fun. Remember how sad and alone you felt before, Naruto-kun. I think he feels the same. We should help him! "

Sakura's answer made Naruto remember how he felt before he made his first friend. '_Perhaps he can become my friend too_'

"Come on Naruto-kun! We have to catch up with him!" exclaimed the pinkette as she took her friend's hand.

"Hey, wait up!" Sasuke was walking home so he could continue his training when he heard shouting. He stopped and turned to see what was happening. He saw a boy and a girl, around his age, running towards him. The girl had pink hair and was dressed in a red summer dress with flower patterns. The boy he recognized from his class. The blond always had the lowest scores on tests. '_What do they want from me?_ '

The duo finally stopped in front of the dark-haired boy and Naruto directly asked:

"Do you wanna play with us?"

"Hn" the young Uchiha was starting to feel irritated. He just turned his back to them and continued walking.

"Hey, don't ignore us!" exclaimed Naruto and then he threw a small rock at the head of the dark-haired boy.

"Naruto-kun! Don't throw rocks please! It's rude and you could hurt someone!" Sakura scolded her friend.

"But he was being rude first" shouted Naruto as he pointed at the other boy, who had stopped walking. Suddenly the Uchiha turned and walked up to the loud boy.

"Why did you do that!?" asked angrily Sasuke as he took Naruto's shirt in his hands.

"Let him go please. We just wanted to know if you would like to play with us" explained Sakura.

Sasuke stopped his actions and looked at the pink-haired girl. "I don't have time for playing" he said curtly and then again turned his back to the duo.

"Are you sure? We can play tag" suggested Sakura. The dark-haired boy didn't reply, he just put his hands back in his pockets and started walking.

"Leave him Sakura-chan, maybe he is too slow and is afraid that we will outrun him" laughed Naruto.

That made Sasuke stop. "What did you say, dope?" the irritation was clear in his voice.

"Aah! Teme! Don't call me dope!" shouted the blonde-haired boy.

"I will come and play tag with you and you will see just how fast I am!"declared the Uchiha.

At first Sakura was afraid that they would start fighting and hurt themselves, but then she smiled, clapped her hands happily and took off towards the park. "Come on!" she shouted over her shoulder.

"Wait Sakura-chan! Hey teme, I bet that I can go to the park faster than you!" challenged Naruto with a loud laugh and started running.

'_Idiot. I will show him who is faster!_' all thoughts about training were forgotten as the boy run after the two laughing children.

**AN: Soo what do you think? Please leave a review with your opinion on the story.**

**Thank you for reading :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**I want to thank all of you who had reviewed last time: **_**special-youkoai**__** (you were the first, thank you, you made my day :D ), **__**7Annabelle43**__**, **__**leafstone**__** and two guest reviewers (Gon an Guest).**_

**I also want to thank all who had added my story as favorite or had followed it. And last but not least all of you who had read it. Thank you!** **Because of you I got so motivated that I started writing the second chapter the same night I posted the first one. But then I rewrote it three times. I hope you like it :) **

**I don't own Naruto**

**..**

'_I can't believe it! I'm finally a genin! I can't wait to tell Sakura-chan and Sasuke! But… should I tell them about the Kyuubi? No! They would hate me then, like everyone else! … But I can't keep something like that from them, they are my friends and Iruka-sensei said that he didn't hate me, maybe they won't too__'_

It was dark outside. The night was unusually cool and you couldn't see any stars in the sky. A blond boy was slowly walking on the dark streets of Konoha. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice his friend running up to him.

"Naruto! Where have you been! Sakura is worried sick because of you!" said angrily Sasuke.

Said blond looked startled at the other boy. After a few moments of silence Naruto opened his mouth. "Sasuke I..." Uchiha's gaze softened as he looked at Naruto. '_Something happened._'

"I have to tell you and Sakura-chan something" his voice was quiet and his eyes were locked on the ground.

"Let's go" Sasuke put his hand reassuringly on Naruto's shoulder and pushed him lightly in the direction of Sakura's house.

"Naruto-kun! I was so worried! Don't you ever dare scare me like this again!" shouted the usually soft spoken pinkette as she hugged her blonde-haired friend.

"I'm sorry" murmured Naruto.

The three of them kneeled on cushions around a tea table and Naruto sighted loudly as he started tracing the patterns of the wood with his finger.

"When I failed the test I felt terrible. I felt as if I had let you down guys. This morning Sakura-chan sent us off to the Academy with such a big smile and wished us luck, and then you Sasuke passed without a problem. I know that it was wrong to run away but I couldn't help it. Then Mizuki-sensei found me and told me I still had a chance to pass, I only had to find one scroll and learn a justsu from there. I-I didn't even think about it, I went and took the scroll. Iruka-sensei came and it turned out that Mizuki-sensei used me so he could steal the scroll. They started shouting and then…. "

Naruto sighted loudly and still looking at the table whispered "Mizuki said that the Kyuubi was sealed inside of me" his statement was followed by silence. '_I knew it, they do hate me now! Who would want to be a friend with a demon?_' the boy stood up and with teary eyes turned to leave only to be stopped by a hand on his wrist.

"Where do you think you are going again?" Sasuke pulled his friend on the ground next to him. Sakura kneeled on Naruto's other side and touched his shoulder tenderly.

"I think this only proves how strong you are Naruto-kun." Her soft words made the boy look her in the eyes. "You are a hero, a hero that Konoha should be grateful to have and I'm sure that after a few years you will show them just how strong you really are!"

"But the fox killed so many-" the blonde's protest was cut short by Sasuke's raising voice.

"And it would have killed even more if it wasn't put inside you Naruto! It's thanks to the people who sealed it in you that we are all alive. " the boy looked at Naruto.

"Naruto-kun, don't you dare think that we could hate you because of this! We have known each other for more than four years. We have become a small family by now, not a perfect and traditional one, but still a family. Something like this can't make us change how we feel Naruto-kun." Sakura said with a small smile on her face.

Naruto just nodded silently, as if assuring himself that these words were true.

"Thank you Sakura-chan, Sasuke." the sadness disappeared from his eyes and the fire returned in them, not as strong as before, but still there.

The girl stood up and went towards the kitchen. "I will make us some tea. It'll help us relax so we can get some sleep. "

After she disappeared behind the door Sasuke turned his head and looked directly in Naruto's blue eyes.

"It was stupid to run." a simple sentence, but Naruto knew that this was Sasuke's way of saying he was worried. He sighted "I know, sorry" then he remembered something.

"Hey, Sasuke, on the scroll there really was a jutsu." his tone was mischievous "And I did learn it. So I guess now I know more than you do. Now I am stronger!" declared the blonde with a goofy grin. Then a hand grabbed his head and pushed it in the table.

"Shut up, dope"

"Aaaah! Teme! Let me go!" his voice was miffed by the wooden table.

In the other room Sakura heard the commotion and just smiled. '_I'm glad Naruto-kun is okay now._ '

**The same night in the Hokage's office **

"Mizuki will be punished for his actions. Now, tomorrow all of you will meet with your teams, I believe that you already have their files. Do you have any questions? " an old man was sitting behind a big desk. He looked tired, but still round him there was a strong aura that basically screamed authority. One of the people in the room put a small orange book in his vest pocket and looked at his leader.

"I have only two members" he said lazily.

"Ah, yes Kakashi. The graduates this year weren't enough so after all teams were formed I decided to put Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke with you, without assigning a third member. Everything is in the file you were given." the silver-haired man nodded once his head.

"Also Kakashi, seeing as two man team is not something normal for rookies, Sasuke and Naruto won't be told their team along with their classmates. You will find them and tell them yourself. Preferably in the morning, before class, Iruka has been informed. Don't be late!" said sternly the Hokage.

"What if I can't find them in time?" asked Kakashi sounding almost bored. It looked as if he wanted to find an excuse to be late.

"You are one of the best jonins, I am sure you can manage to find two genins just fine."

Sasuke tried to hide how impressed he was. Really, he did. Usually the Uchiha was good at masking his emotions, but at this moment his wide eyes were a huge giveaway.

It was a nice, sunny morning. Everything started in Sakura's beautiful garden that was colored by various flowers. It was there, among the bloomed plants, where Naruto decided do show his friends the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu.

Currently five Narutos were standing in a semi-circle around Sakura and Sasuke.

"That's so cool Naruto-kun!" shouted the excited pinkette as she went to touch one of the clones.

"Right Sakura-chan! Now I am stronger and I can protect you forever! Hahahaha" the original Naruto was standing by the back door of Sakura's house and was laughing almost manically.

None of them noticed a tall man with silver hair leaning against the wall of the house, a few meters beside the blond boy.

"Mah, shouldn't you be getting ready to go and meet your team and sensei instead of playing?"

Sakura shrieked in surprise as she looked at the stranger. '_Why is he here?_' Sasuke got slightly in front of her and glared at the man, then noted his uniform and the mask that hid a big part of his face. '_Who is he? Why is a jonin here?_'

Naruto was closest to the masked shinobi and literary screamed in fright. He tried to get away fast from the man, but in the process the blonde-haired boy stepped in a big mud puddle, splashing whit dirt the silver-haired jonin.

"My first impression of you is: I don't like you" said Kakashi as he wiped some of the mud off of his face.

**AN: Aaand here it is. I rewrote this chapter three times until I was satisfied enough with it. I still don't like it very much, but I wanted to post it. Next time we will see more Kakashi :) **

**I haven't thought of couples yet, I'm not even sure if there will be any. What do you think?**

**Also if you like anime and manga and have some time to spare, please visit my blog, you can find the link in my profile. I'm trying to create a place where we can discuss anime and manga together :)**

**Thank you for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you all for reading and reviewing last time! You are amazing! Every review and notification about follow/favorite on my story motivates me soo much! **

**I don't own Naruto or any of its characters. **

…

Kakashi wasn't expecting any of it. First, he wasn't expecting to have to look for the two brats for so long. He checked the addresses written in their files, he checked the Uzumaki's favorite ramen stand, and he even checked the park. He should have known that they will be in the house of their civilian friend.

Another thing he didn't expect was to see a Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. Naruto was supposed to be the deadlast of his class and yet there he was, creating clones via jutsu that was at least B rank.

Oh, and he never even though about being covered in mud. The brat was lucky that his precious book wasn't stained.

He knew his team was unusual, and not only because they were one member short. Uchiha Sasuke was the only survivor of the massacre done by his brother. The first months after the bloody night Sasuke had closed off the rest of the world. He only lived for training and getting stronger. His file said that he was always on top of his class. But then something made him change. Or rather someone. The same someone who became Naruto's first friend.

When he sneaked in the girl's house he was so surprised by what he saw, that he closed his beloved book and put it in his pocked. And that was saying a lot.

There, in the middle of the garden were standing two figures – on a boy and the other a girl. The boy was obviously Uchiha Sasuke – he had the dark hair typical for his family and on the back of his blue shirt was printed the clan's symbol. The girl had long pink hair and was wearing white summer dress that reached to her knees. The two of them were surrounded by clones. Clones made by a boy, shorter than both of his friends. A blonde boy with sun-kissed skin and a smile so big that it was almost contagious.

"Meet me on training ground 3 after thirty minutes." and he was gone in a puff and a small smoke cloud.

"Are you sure he was a jonin, Sasuke? Maybe we shouldn't have left Sakura-chan alone. What if he was an enemy?"

"Are you really that stupid? Didn't you see his uniform? And if he was an enemy he would have killed us a long time ago, who knows how long he was watching us." Sasuke explained angrily to Naruto, as the two of them entered the area that was training ground 3.

"Aaah, you are on time, good. Now I'll be your sensei. We are officially Team 7." the same masked man from Sakura's house was leaning on a tree, reading a book.

"So we're on the same team?! YAHOO!" cheered the blond, while Sasuke frowned.

"Aren't genin teams supposed to have 3 rookies on them?"

"Our team will be special. Only the three of us. Now introduce yourselves. " Kakashi request was met by silence. He sighted and looked from his book to the boys that were standing in front of him.

"Maybe I should start. My name is Hatake Kakashi, I don't think you should know the things I like or dislike. My dream is only for me to know." Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other and then Naruto stood up and yelled:

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto, I like ramen, Sakura-chan, her cooking and training with the teme. I dislike waiting for my food to be done, bullies and people who hate me without a reason. My dream is to become a Hokage!" when he sat again, he lightly pushed Sasuke in the ribs "Your turn!"

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I like training and spending time with the dope and Sakura, I dislike a lot of things. My dream is to kill my brother." '_He doesn't sound as dark as everyone think he is_' Kakashi thought and then he started reading his book again.

"Hmm, OK. Now about your test tomorrow-"the jonin was interrupted by Naruto's loud protest.

"Whaaat?! We already took the test! Tell him Sasuke, we don't need another test!" Sasuke only nodded in agreement with a frown on his face.

"Now, now. This is a special test that will help me decide if you are worthy to become a shinobi. If I think that you aren't good enough I will send you back to the Academy or I can even make sure you don't get to become ninja ever again. Be here tomorrow at 5.30 and don't eat anything or you may throw up. Don't be late." And with that the silver-haired man was gone, once again in a puff of white smoke.

"AAAAAH! What are we going to do Sasuke?! What if we don't pass this super test? What if we can't become genins again?" the blond was panicking, his blue eyes wide with fear, his hands fisted in his hair.

"You are being stupid again dope. We will pass. Or at least I will. Naruto, if you fail tomorrow that will make Sakura very sad, she knows how much you want to be a ninja. If this happens, if you make her feel bad because you were too dumb to pass, I will personally beat you. Do you understand?" Sasuke has taken Naruto's shirt in his hands and had lifted the blond boy from the ground so their faces were at the same level.

"Hehehe… Yes, I got it. I won't make Sakura-chan feel bad! I will pass! YEAH! I'm stronger now, nothing can stop me!" when he was released, Naruto pumped his fist in the air. Then he remembered something "And don't call me dope, you teme!"

"Let's go out for dinner tonight to celebrate you becoming genins! Maybe we can go to Ichiraku Ramen." Sakura was really happy for her friends. They just got a step closer to achieving their dreams.

"But Sakura-chan, we are not-" Naruto was abruptly interrupted by Sasuke who hit his friend hard on the back.

"The dope wanted to say that we are not having ramen, but something more special. Let's go to a BBQ bar." the dark-haired boy glared at Naruto '_I dare you to say something about the test_'. The blonde boy understood the hidden message and nodded his head not daring to argue even about him being called "dope" again.

"So tell me about your sensei. Is he cool? Is he strong? Does he wear that mask all the time?" the three of them were seated around wooden BBQ table. They had just placed their order and Sakura though that it was time to interrogate the boys.

Naruto opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off by loud shriek of "Sasuke-kun"

Suddenly at their table appeared a girl with blond hair that was tied in a high ponytail. She went to Sasuke's side and hugged him, while the boy just grunted and tried to push her away.

"Ino! Are you here to celebrate too?" questioned curiously Naruto after he noticed two other people he knew from class – Shikamaru and Choji.

"Naruto?! I heard you passed and now you are on Sasuke-kun's team. How could you pass, when you couldn't do a single justsu on the exam?!" the girl then saw the pinkette sitting next to Sasuke. "And who are you?"

Sakura stood up, turned to the three strangers and bowed in greeting "My name is Haruno Sakura. It's nice to meet you."

Ino was stunned by the formality '_Even though I was so rude._' She straightened her back and bowed too. "My name is Yamanaka Ino. These are my teammates Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Choji. Nice to meet you."

"Yamanaka-san, do you and your friends want to sit with us?" smiled Sakura as she gestured to the empty seats on their table.

"Oh yes, thank you! And call me Ino." Shikamaru murmured "Troublesome" under his breath as he sat down, while Choji was just happy to get some food.

That night Ino's attention wasn't fully on Sasuke and that surprised the four boys. She talked mostly with Sakura, asking all kinds of questions about the pink-haired girl. She didn't get angry when she found out that Sasuke and Sakura were friends for so long. And that was extremely unusual for Sasuke's number one fangirl.

"Three hours! He is three hours late!" Naruto was angry and he was also very hungry.

"Hn." Sasuke's irritation matched Naruto's. '_He told us not to be late, yet he is three hours late._'

"Good morning, little genins of mine." Kakashi appeared from behind his students.

"YOU ARE LATE!" Naruto yelled and pointed at his sensei.

"And you are loud. Now let's start with your test." the jonin took one bell from his pocked and showed it to the two boys. "The first one to get this bell from me before noon will pass and the other will be send back to the Academy" he then opened his book and started reading. After few minutes passed and nothing happened, Kakashi looked towards Sasuke and Naruto who were standing in front of him, not doing anything. "Aren't you going to attack me and try to take the bell?" '_What are they thinking? Is this some sort of strategy?_'

"Send both of us to the Academy! I won't continue without Sasuke. I'm stronger and I will probably pass, and then you would have to send him back, and that will depress him and Sakura-chan will feel sad, so it's better if you send both of us." Sasuke wanted to hit Naruto so bad, but managed to keep his cool and didn't say anything.

'_Well_' Kakashi though '_I certainly wasn't expecting this._'

**AN: What do you think? I wanted to update the next chapter as soon as possible. I still haven't decided on couples, I like the ShikaSaku or GaaraSaku idea I got in a review, but I will think about it, you feel free to leave a suggestion. Perhaps after few chapters I will make a poll.**

**Thank you for reading! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you guys so much! I want to say thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, followed or added my story as a favorite! **

**I don't own Naruto or any of its characters. **

…**.**

_**~After the bell test~**_

"We will start with your stamina" after the boys refused to try to take the bell, Kakashi told them that they passed and explained about teamwork. Then he announced the beginning of their first day of official shinobi training. "Today we will only run a few laps around the village… run around it ten times and meet me here."

"Hold on! Ten laps?! Around Konoha?! That's not a few! And you say 'We will run blah blah' but you aren't going to do them with us, right? I bet you are going to be a lazy old man reading your perverted book all day, while we sweat and tire ourselves!" protested loudly Naruto as he pointed his finger accusingly at the man.

"Let's make them twenty laps." said Kakashi as he opened his book. Sasuke glared at the jonin, then he hit Naruto on the head and pushed him toward the road, before he could say something again.

"Shut up dope and start running." a faint yell of "Teme" was heard as the two boys disappeared behind the horizon.

_**~Later the same day~**_

"He is terrible Sakura-chan! He made us run for sooooo long and he only sat under a tree and read that book of his! I couldn't feel my legs!" Naruto was currently complaining to Sakura about their first training session.

The three friends were taking a relaxing walk after dinner. The sun had started to set and there weren't a lot of people outside.

"Naruto-kun, he is your sensei, he has to train you. You two want to become stronger right? I believe he will help you with that task." Sakura's voice was soft and calm.

"What do you expect Naruto, to become stronger without making any effort?" Sasuke's question made Naruto slump his shoulders in defeat.

They continued walking in silence. As they passed by the Memorial Stone the boys noticed a familiar figure standing in front of it. They couldn't mistake his strangely shaped hair.

"Oi, Kakashi-sensei!" yelled Naruto on top of his lungs, trying to get the attention of the jonin.

"Naruto-kun! You can't shout in a place like this! Kakashi-san has come to give his respect to the dead, it's very rude to interrupt! Apologize!" scolded the pinkette in unusual for her harsh tone. Naruto bowed his head in shame and muttered "I'm sorry, sensei"

Kakashi turned towards the three youngsters and sighed. "Just don't do it again Naruto. Here you have to be quiet and bow to the heroism of the people whose names are written on the stone."

"Heroism… so they are heroes? I want to have my name there!" exclaimed the blond, but his enthusiasm was cut off by Sasuke's curt "You don't."

"These people are dead. They lost their lives in service to Konoha. They are heroes, who gave their life for the village. Some of these names belonged to people who were very important to me." Kakashi's explanation made Naruto widen his blue eyes.

"Then… then I wish that one day I am worthy enough so my name could be written here after I die. Because I am sure that I will only give my life to protect Konoha and the people close to my heart. And I hope that before this day comes, I would have proven myself strong enough to everyone." The usually cheerful tone of the blonde-haired boy was now serious.

"Naruto-kun, I am sure that a long time before you die for this village, your face would be engraved on the Hokage Monument." Sakura said with a huge, confident grin on her face and Sasuke couldn't stop the small smile that formed when he saw the emotional expression on Naruto's face.

Kakashi watched as the three of them interacted. '_They seem to know each other really well_'

"Hmm… What big dreams you have there… to come closer to achieving them we should start running fifty laps tomorrow and I will give to both of you some weights for your arms and legs." it wasn't a suggestion, even though Kakashi's tone was light, the authority in it was clear.

Or at least it was clear to Sasuke and Sakura. Naruto just whined "No! How will this help me to become a Hokage? My legs are still hurting from today!" However, his protest wasn't acknowledged as the silver-haired jonin disappeared in a puff of white smoke.

**~The next day~ **

Sakura was coming back from visiting Ino's flower shop when she saw a small white dog limping on the street, one of its legs was swollen. She stopped and crouched next to the dog.

"Poor baby, I bet it hurts a lot, your paw looks sprained." When the dog didn't try to run away from her, she patted its head. The white fur ball nodded as if it understood her. The pinkette then put her hand, which was glowing in a light green, over the hurt limb. "I'm quite new to healing and I can't do much, but at least now it won't cause you pain until I take you to see a real doctor." Sakura smiled gently at the dog and took him in her arms. She decided to take him to the Inuzuka veterinarian clinic, because there worked some of the best vets.

"Oi, let Akamaru go! What have you done to him?!" Sakura was startled when someone yelled from behind her. She turned and saw a boy with wild brown hair and red marks on his face. He was angrily glaring at her, until the animal in her arms barked. His expression changed to confused and he looked at the pink-haired girl. "You helped him?"

"Aah yes! I found him on the street, he was in pain and I tried something I read in a medical book and it took his pain away. I was just taking him to the Inuzuka clan's clinic." The girl explained nervously.

"He is my dog, his name is Akamaru. I'm Unuzuka Kiba. Thank you for taking care of him."

"It wasn't a problem, I like helping others. I'm Harruno Sakura." Sakura smiled at the boy and gave him Akamaru. "It was nice to meet you Inuzuka-san, Akamaru, but I have to go now. I hope you get well soon baby." The pinkette again patted softly Akamaru's head and then turned in the direction of her house. When she disappeared behind the corner Kiba looked at his companion with disbelief.

"Baby?! She called you baby! And she was cute too! How come you are always able to get girl's attention?! "

Kakashi's training schedule was hell for the boys. Sasuke and Naruto were dead tired. But they didn't go directly to their houses. They were standing in front of Sakura's house for five minutes, but their female friend still hadn't open to let them in.

Sasuke used his spare key to unlock the door and the two of them entered quietly. It was dark inside and no noises were heard. The two boys went in the kitchen were they guessed Sakura would be, waiting for them for dinner, but it was empty. On the table were served two plates with covered food.

"Maybe she went out? Or she is in the bathroom?" suggested uneasily Naruto as he looked around the room. His eyes widened when he saw the clock on the wall. "Or maybe we are late. Sakura-chan, don't hate us, please! It was sensei's fault!" the blonde's voice was becoming louder and louder as he went around the house in search of his friend.

"Shut up dope! She may be sleeping already!" Sasuke scolded Naruto. The blue-eyed boy just grunted in protest but stayed quiet.

They found her in the living room, sound asleep on the couch, with open book on her lap – '_First steps in chakra healing_'.

Naruto closed softly the book and put it on the nearby table, while Sasuke covered the pinkette with a warm blanket.

"Good night Sakura-chan. Have sweet dreams." With that Naruto went to heat the food that Sakura had left for them.

Sasuke stayed a little longer and touched the cover of the book his friend was reading before she fell asleep. '_Medic… I guess you want to get closer to achieving your dream too._ '

**AN: Here is the fourth chapter. I hope you like it :). **

**Thank you ****Jessica Judith****, for pointing out the "problem" (well it's not a problem, but I can't think of another word :D) with the scenery change. I haven't noticed it because everything is planned in my head and it makes sense for me, but I guess when you don't have the story in your head it can get confusing. Sorry about that, I tried to change it in this chapter and I hope it's ok now :).**

**96bittersweetblackcat asked about Tsunade and if Sakura will be a nurse. Well I think this chapter answered some part of this question, yes she will be a medic (even though I'm not sure if she will be working in the hospital), yes ****I plan to have**** Tsunade train her, but only in healing, she won't have her monstrous power (at least for now it's like this in my mind, you never know how the story will turn out :D)**

**Also, about pairings. I don't know yet, I like many different Saku pairings. Thank you for all of your suggestions. Couples will be formed later in the story, and when the time comes I will tell you and make a poll and you will choose who Sakura will be with and also if there will be other couples. ****This will probably happen after four or five chapters (for now).**

**Thank you for reading! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Your reviews make me happy! :D Thank you so much for reviewing, following, adding to favorite and reading! You guys are amazing! Every review is taken in consideration.**

**I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.**

…**..**

"I will beat you this time Sasuke!" shouted Naruto and prepared to make a few clones, but a hand suddenly grabbed his shoulder and stopped the fight.

"You know the rules Naruto, only taijustsu is allowed, no ninjutsu. Now continue! " Kakashi scolded the blond boy and then went to sit under a tree so he could observe the sparing genins.

Two weeks had passed since the boys graduated. They had been training every day, and the improvement in their skills was noticeable. They had a schedule – their training session was in the morning, until lunch, and then they would do D-rank missions.

The clock that was meant to signalize the end of the sparing rang and Sasuke and Naruto stopped all action, panting, trying to catch their breath after four hours of throwing kicks and punches. Then Naruto's eyes widened in excitement, he grinned and pointed to the other end of the training ground. "Sakura-chan!" At that, Sasuke too looked in that direction and smirked when he saw the pink-haired figure walking calmly towards them.

Kakashi was wondering why she was coming. Because he was a good teacher, and good teachers stalked their students, he knew that the boys visited her every day, even if he had tired them to death, they would stop at her house. In the files, that he received before he met his team, was written that she was very close to both Sasuke and Naruto. But until now she had never come to see the boys during training.

"Hey guys. I brought you lunch." Sakura gave two bento boxes to Naruto and Sasuke and then she turned to Kakashi. "I have one for you too, Kakashi-san."

"Ah, thank you Sakura-chan." smiled the jonin as he took his box. "Well, I guess we can eat here."

The three youngsters talked to each other while they ate. Even Sasuke, who was usually silent, took part in the conversation. Kakashi just watched them '_Hmm, maybe I have found my strongest weapon against them._' He began to make plans in his head.

"How is training going?" asked Sakura.

"Boring! We always do the same stuff! We run laps, then we spar and then we clean someone's house or garden! And on extra bad days we have to catch the devil cat Tora" complained Naruto, Sasuke just grunted in agreement. "And sensei is never practicing with us! He just reads his perverted book! Do something sensei! Motivate us! Think of different exercises!"

Kakashi smiled mischievously "Oh, don't worry Naruo, I will motivate you just fine."

_**~The next day~**_

The next morning, when the boys arrived at the training ground, they saw a piece of paper pinned to one of the trees. Sasuke took it in his hand and read it out loud.

"Good morning, it's your favorite sensei. As you read this I have already taken Sakura. You have until noon to find us. I left clues all around the village, you must follow the instructions you find, I will know if you cheat. If you are late I will let Sakura-chan read my book. First clue is on the same tree you found the note, you have to climb it without using hands and no Naruto, you can't use your clones. "

Naruto fisted his hair in both hands and made a noise that sounded like something between a surprised shout and horrified scream. "Sasuke we have to hurry! Who knows what else this pervert will do! How dare he take our sweet Sakura-chan!"

Sasuke gritted his teeth in anger and crushed the paper in his fist. '_We only have five hours to find her. Damn it! We have to move fast_'

"How are we supposed to get so high on the tree if we can't use our hands?" wondered Naruto.

"He wants us to use our chakra. Direct chakra to your feet and try to stick to the bark." explained Sasuke. The blond boy nodded and tried to do as his friend told him, but he only managed to fall down.

"It's impossible! AHHH! This won't stop me! I'm going to find you Kakashi-pervert!" yelled frustrated Naruto, only to be hit on the head by Sasuke "Shut up dope! Try again! We don't have enough time!"

"Teme! I will be the first one to walk up this tree!"

_**~Meanwhile~**_

"Thank you for the delicious breakfast Kakashi-san." A pinkette and a silver-haired man were exiting a small food stand.

"Ah, no problem Sakura-chan. You are very nice companion, unlike your two friends, who are always complaining or bickering."

"Are you sure they will be fine to train by themselves?" asked worried Sakura.

"Don't worry, I left them with a few exercises that should occupy them until lunch." Kakashi assured her as the two began walking down the busy street.

"Kakashi! My eternal rival! How lucky I am to see you!" a loud shout was heard from behind, and Kakashi stiffened, his visible eye widened and he grunted something under his breath about "Not again" and "Why Kami-sama?"

A tall man with black hair, cut in bowl style was running fast towards Kakashi and Sakura. He was dressed in tight green spandex bodysuit. Behind him were standing two boys, one with long brown hair and one that had the same haircut and the same suit as the tall man.

"Ah! What youthful lady you've got there! Such lovely and youthful hair."

Kakashi sighted "Gai, this is Haruno Sakura, she is friends with my team. Sakura, this is Maito Gai and two of his students - Hyuuga Neji and Rock Lee. " Sakura bowed politely, and Gai just nodded his head, grinning.

Suddenly the mini-version of Gai tried to attach himself to Sakura's arm, but he was stopped by Neji "Don't make a fool of yourself Lee, Gai-sensei is enough!"

"I'm sorry Gai we have to go now, we have some important stuff to do." The silver-haired jonin took Sakura's hand and pulled her in the direction they were walking in earlier.

"Kakashi, I will leave you to your date now, it was nice to meet you youthful Sakura-chan!" shouted Gai after them. Kakashi's visible eye twitched in anger, but he managed to keep his cool and just continued walking.

"Your friend is strange Kakashi-san, and one of his students is his copy! How is this possible!?" exclaimed Sakura with slight amusement.

"Ah, don't mind what he says, Gai is unique like this, but he is very loyal friend and a strong shinobi. And Lee is a little different than the other ninjas. He can't use ninjustu or genjutsu, but he is better than good at taijustsu. He has proven that even if you are not good at something, this shouldn't stop you, but motivate you to find your strength." explained Kakashi.

"He has a strong spirit" said Sakura.

"Yes, he does. Gai helped him a lot. The two of them are so similar that it's scary sometimes. I am actually thinking about asking Gai to improve Naruto's and Sasuke's taijustsu, but don't tell them yet." They were nearing the park and the masked jonin started looking around as if he was searching for something.

"You are a very good sensei, Kakashi-san." Said man just looked at the pinkette with disbelief. "You really are! Even though Naruto is always complaining, he is actually very excited every morning when he sets off to train. He knows that he needs your aid so he can become stronger and achieve his dream. And Sasuke… well he would never listen to someone he doesn't respect. You somehow have earned that."

"Hmm… thank you for the kind words Sakura-chan."

_**~Meanwhile~**_

Naruto and Sasuke were running around the village for the last four and a half hours. They had to walk up trees and walls using only their chakra, then they had to puzzle out some riddles and read a few maps drawn by Kakashi. Now they were standing in front of the last clue. "_Come where it all started._"

"What does this means?" Naruto was ready to smash his head on the wall next to him. He couldn't get it '_What started where?_'

"The park" suggested Sasuke.

"The park? Where it all started… Oh! That's right! Where we met for the first time!" the blue-eyed boy said excited. "But how does he know we met there?"

"It doesn't matter at the moment. We need to hurry, we have only twenty minutes" Naruto nodded in agreement and the two set off towards the park as fast as they could.

_**~At the park~**_

Kakashi and Sakura were taking a walk among the big trees. The pink-haired girl was just telling the man about her wish to try as a medic, when out of nowhere a short blond boy jumped out of a bush and started yelling at the jonin.

"How dare you take our Sakura-chan! You perverted sensei! You better not have broken her sweet and innocent mind with your stupid book!"

"Naruto-kun?! What are you doing here?" asked surprised the pinkette.

Naruto opened his mouth to answer, but he was cut off by his sensei.

"It looks like you were able to find us. Good. And you even followed the instructions! What nice little genins I have! You just acquired some very important ninja skills in just five hours – reading different maps, using your chakra for reaching inaccessible places and decoding hidden messages." Kakashi smiled under his mask as he saw the boys looking at him with disbelief. "It seems like with the right motivation everything is possible." When he heard this Sasuke clenched his fist while Naruto led Sakura away from the silver-haired man.

"Let's go Sakura-chan. Tell me everything that happened today! Did he make you do something strange? Maybe read something? Perhaps something perverted? " Sakura just shook her head and started laughing. She turned around and waved at Kakashi. "Bye Kakashi-san!"

The man waved back and smiled at the girl "Bye Sakura-chan! Thank you for the nice company!" he ignored the glares coming from her male friends.

"If you do something like this again I will burn every edition of your precious novel." Sasuke's voice was calm, but the message was clear. The dark aura around the boy was enough to scare a normal person, but it didn't affect Kakashi at all. The jonin just chuckled and ruffled the genin's hair.

"But you can't deny that it was a genius training exercise! I'm such a good sensei! "

**AN: Well, what do you think? It was just an idea that stuck in my head… I just can imagine Naruto and Sasuke running around Konoha in panic, reading strangely drawn maps and trying to walk up a wall, while Kakashi and Sakura are taking a relaxing walk or eating breakfast. We also met Gai, Lee and Neji and the boys learned how to use chakra for walking on trees and walls. **

**Next chapter will probably be about their first C-rank mission. **

**Leave suggestions about the next character that Sakura should meet. **

**I will try to make the next chapters longer because you deserve it! :)**

**Thank you for reading! :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you so much for reading, reviewing and for every favorite/follow alert. You are awesome! :D**

**I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.**

…

"All done! It shouldn't leave a scar now, Ino-chan" Sakura smiled as she looked at the place where a few moments ago a little scratch mark was bleeding.

"Oooh amazing Sakura-chan! Thank you!" Ino exclaimed gratefully. Shikamaru had scratched her with a kunai on the cheek during training, and she was worried that it would scar.

"It was a very small wound, almost every shinobi can heal cuts like this at certain point."

"But you aren't a ninja! And you taught yourself too! You didn't go to the academy right? How are you able to use your chakra in such complicated manner then?"

"I was always able to control my chakra. I don't know why… the Hokage once told me that my father had the same talent, but I don't remember him…" the pinkette looked lost in her memories.

"Did he also had your hair? It would be strange to be a man with pink hair" Ino asked, trying to change Sakura's sad thoughts.

"I don't know, I don't have any pictures of my parents"

"Maybe you took after your mother! I'm sure she was really beautiful, maybe she had your soft and long hair" Ino smiled as she started playing with Sakura's pink locks.

"Your hair is also beautiful Ino-chan! It's so long and it looks really healthy! But doesn't it get in the way on missions?"

"Well, a few days ago it got stuck in some dry twigs, Shikamaru complained all day after that about me being 'Troublesome' " grumbled the blond girl as she crossed her arms at the memory. "But I don't want to cut it!"

"Why don't you put it in a bun while you are on missions?" suggested Sakura. Ino nodded enthusiastically in response.

"Do my hair Sakura-chan! Then I will do yours!" the pinkette smiled and started braiding her friend's long hair.

_**~Later the same day~**_

Sakura was walking alone after Ino left to go on her training session with her team. The pink-haired girl was lost in thoughts about her best friends and she didn't notice the white fur ball running towards her, until the small dog started barking happily.

"Ah! Akamaru! What are you doing here? Oh, your paw is okay now." Sakura smiled at the animal and scratched him behind the ear. "I'm happy to see you too! Oh what a good boy you are, your fur is so soft!" the white dog was about to melt away in happiness when he heard his master's voice.

"Akamaru! Why did you run from me! Aaah, Sakura-chan it's you!" Kiba didn't expect to see the pinkette. "I'm sorry Akamaru ran at you like that."

"Don't worry, Kiba-kun, I don't mind him, he is just so cute and fluffy." Laughed Sakura as she took Akamaru in her arms and cuddled him. The dog barked and licked her on the cheek.

'_Cute? Fluffy? He is a nin-dog! And what is he doing, kissing her? He is better in flirting than me! and with a really cute girl too!_' Kiba's angry musing was cut short by a quiet "A-a-ano…"

Just them Sakura noticed the two figures that were standing behind Kiba. One was a girl with short dark blue hair and pearly eyes, like the ones Hyuuga Neji had. The other was a boy with sunglasses on, and a really high collared jacket.

"Sakura-chan, meet my teammates – Hyuuga Hinata and Aburame Shino. Guys this is Haruno Sakura, she is friends with Sasuke and Naruto." Introduced Kiba. Sakura bowed and Hinata followed her example, while Shino just nodded his head politely.

"I'm sorry, but I have to go. I want to greet Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun and Kakashi-san at the gates, they are returning from their mission today." Sakura patted Akamaru on the head and put him down.

"Wait, a mission outside of the village?! How come we didn't receive one?!" Kiba yelled irritated.

"I'm sure you will have a lot of harder missions soon Kiba-kun" said softly the pinkette. She petted the dog one last time, then waved and disappeared behind a corner, trying to reach the gates as fast as possible.

"So, Akamaru is also better than you when it comes to girls. And he has a good taste too." commented Shino.

"Shut up! Let's go, Kurenai-sensei is waiting for us." Kiba stormed angrily, blush covering his cheeks, almost the same red as the marks on his face. Hinata just giggled and followed her friends.

"Sakura-chan! I missed you!" yelled a blond boy and run to hug a pink-haired girl. She laughed and hugged him back with a softly "I missed you too", then she looked behind his back "Sasuke-kun!" she crushed him in her arms. He smiled in her hair and inhaled her scent.

Kakashi smiled under his mask at the scene "Hmm and didn't you miss me, Sakuar-chan" he teased the girl.

"Why would she miss you? You are a pervert!" shouted Naruto.

Sakura ignored his comment and gave Kakashi a fast hug, surprising the jonin.

"Of course I did, Kakashi-san! Now, how about we have lunch together to celebrate your first C-rank mission" suggested Sakura.

"Oooh Sakura-chan, it wasn't a C-rank! It was A-rank! We fought with a legendary shinobi!" and with that Naruto started explaining every detail about their mission.

_**~The same night~**_

Sasuke and Naruto were at Sakura's house. The three of them were sitting in the garden, watching the stars. Sakura was in between her friends, clutching Naruto's arm, while her head was on Sasuke's shoulder.

"I'm just glad you aren't seriously injured" the boys had hidden a few things from their female friend.

"Don't worry about us Sakura, you know we will always return to you" murmured Sasuke as he twirled a strand of her hair around his finger.

"Sasuke is right Sakura-chan. You know that we will get even harder missions that this one in the future, but we promise to always come back to you" Naruto was playing with her fingers that were clenching his arm.

She sighed softly "I just don't like it when you get hurt" whispered the pinkette.

"I know Sakura, but this is the life of a shinobi and you know it" Sasuke's voice was soft.

Sakura just hummed in response and then she remembered something.

"Hey, today when we were eating lunch I noticed that Kakashi-san was done before us and I didn't see him removing his mask… have you seen his face?" the curiosity was clear in her voice.

"Now that I think about it, I haven't seen him without his mask. We saw that he is hiding his sharingan with his headband, but what about his mask? Maybe he is just really ugly!" suggested Naruto, laughing in the end.

"He is a ninja, a strong one, perhaps he has a battle scar and doesn't want to show it."

"Nah Sasuke, I bet he has huge lips or crooked teeth."

"That's ridiculous dope"

"Don't call me that, teme!"

"Hn. Dope"

"Teme!" even though the two boys were bickering, the atmosphere stayed calm and neither of them stopped playing with Sakura's hair or fingers.

_**~The next day~**_

"Good morning, Kakashi-san"

"Morning Sakura-chan, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, I bought a book about chakra healing of broken limbs" explained the pinkette. The two of them had met in front of a bookstore. Kakashi wanted to buy the new edition of his favorite orange book, but I hadn't arrived yet.

"Do you want to come and have tea at my house Kakashi-san?"

"Hmm?"

"The boys will come over to have tea with me before lunch, why don't you come too?"

"Well I don't have anything better to do, so…"

Sasuke and Naruto were standing on a nearby roof, watching Sakura and Kakashi. The blond grinned and the Uchiha smirked.

"Hn. He actually fell for it."

"Hehehehe"

"Your tea was really amazing Sakura-chan" the compliment startled the three youngsters and they looked at the man.

Sakura had brought the tea cups a few minutes ago, but then a loud noise was heard from the other side of the garden and Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura turned to see what happened. They didn't see anything, but the next time they turned to the table, Kakashi was already done with his drink and was currently sitting on the veranda's wooden floor, feet dangling off the edge.

"Whaaat, you are so fast! When did you drink it?!" exclaimed loudly Naruto. The jonin just eye-smiled in response.

"Did you even take-" Naruto's ranting was cut off by Sasuke's hand.

"Shut up and drink your tea before it cools" but Naruto got the hidden message '_Don't give us away or you're dead_'

"Umm, why don't you go to an onsen, to relax after the mission? I heard that the one closest to the Hokage tower has some sort of promotion – if more than two persons go, you will have to pay only for the first two. And when you come back I will have some lunch ready" smiled Sakura. Sasuke realized her idea and nodded in agreement.

"Hn, that's a good idea"

"Yeah, come on sensei"

"I can use a little relaxing"

"Yeah I'm sure, your old muscles need- OW! Why did you hit me sensei!"

"Sorry Naruto, my hand slipped out of my pocked by accident"

When they came back Sasuke looked really irritated, Naruto's usual smile was replaced by a frown, and Kakashi looked like had just come back after a week-long vacation.

Sasuke and Naruto joined Sakura in the kitchen, where she was putting the food into plates.

"Did it work? Did you see his face?" asked the pinkette excited.

"He bathes with the mask on! I don't know if he has ugly face, but under that piece of fabric there is probably a layer of dirt!"

"Don't worry Naruto-kun, I'm sure he washes his face, and he has to take it off in order to eat right? Take the food to the table, please. "

The four of them were yet again sitting around the small table that was on Sakura's veranda. Kakashi took his bowl which was full with rice and his chopsticks, but then he noticed that his genin and their female friend weren't touching their food. Instead they were watching his every move.

"Aren't you going to eat?"

The three of them grabbed their chopsticks but didn't take their eyes off him.

Suddenly a small animal, a cat with brown fur and a bow on one of its ears jumped over the table and landed in the garden, disappearing behind a big bush. This made the youngsters turn their heads to follow the feline's movements.

"Oh, it looks like Tora has escaped again. Sakura-chan you cook really delicious. I have to go now, see you tomorrow morning boys." and with that the silver-haired man puffed away. On his place were left only his empty plates.

"What!? No! We didn't see his face!" yelled Naruto and fell on his back, clutching his head in anger.

Sasuke just banged his head on the table and murmured something about "Killing", "Tora" and "Stupid cat".

Sakura was staring wide-eyed at the place where Kakashi was sitting '_He ate all of this food in under a minute!_'

"Forget it! We can't do it like this! We need a good plan" said Sasuke when he lifted his head off the table.

Naruto sat up and nodded "Ooh we will get him good next time! For sure!"

**AN: Please review and tell me what you think :) **

**Also you can leave suggestions about the next character that Sakura should meet. **

**Thank you for reading! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you guys so much! I want to say thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, followed or added my story as a favorite! Thank you also for your suggestions.**

**I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.**

"Today we are doing something different – we are discussing your cons and pros. We are starting with Naruto. Sasuke, tell me Naruto's positive and negative qualities as a shinobi" instructed Kakashi and opened his book.

"He is loud, often he doesn't think before he acts, his taijustsu skills can use some improvement and he relies too much on his clones. But he doesn't give up, it doesn't matter how badly injured he is – he never give ups. Also when he decides to rethink his actions, he comes up with good plans."

"Very good. Now Naruto, do the same for Sasuke"

"He is too quiet sometimes, also he is antisocial with strangers and that can get in the way when we have to cooperate with other people. On the other side, he is very good with tactics, his plans are almost always successful and his fighting skills are way better the average" Naruto's tone was serious and he looked his friend in the eyes as he talked. Sasuke nodded, knowing all he heard was true.

"Ok, I agree with both of you. Now you need to work on the negative things you heard. It's important for the dynamics of a team that the members know each other's weak spots. Also you must always listen to your teammate's advice when it comes to your shinobi lifestyle – it may cost you your career or life in the future if you don't"

Silence enveloped the three males until Naruto asked loudly "What about you Kakashi-sensei?"

"Hmm?"

"Let's talk about your cons" suggested Sasuke.

"Yeah! I will start – you are always late, you are a pervert and you don't even hide it - reading your book everywhere-" Naruto's ranting was interrupted by a large hand that landed on the blonde's head and pushed it into the grass.

"Now, now boys, let's not waste our time. Start your laps and don't complain"

_**~The same day~**_

"Hatake-san, the Hokage wants to see you" Kakashi looked at the ANBU that has appeared on their training ground and nodded his head. The jonin was helping Naruto to improve his taijutsu, while Sasuke was doing push-ups with Sakura siting on his back.

"Why don't you go and buy some weapons, while I go and see why the Hokage needs me" suggested the silver-haired man and then disappeared.

Naruto shrugged his shoulders "I do need new kunais"

"Hey, let's go in this one. I heard that the person that sells the weapons is the one that makes them" Naruto said and turned to open the door of the shop, but in his hurry he bumped in someone.

"Watch where you're going!" snapped a tall female with sandy blonde hair, tied in four ponytails. Then she noticed Naruto's headband and snickered "So you are a shinobi… Ha, we won't have a hard time Kankuro" Behind the tall girl was standing a boy whose head was covered with black hood and his face was painted with purple designs. He laughed and pointed at the blond-haired boy "You are right, sis. Look how short he is!"

"Hey!" protested loudly Naruto.

Sasuke was standing in front of Sakura, watching the two foreign ninjas '_Their forehead protectors show that they are from Sunagakure. What are they doing in Konoha_'

"Temari, Kankuro, stop playing around, let's go" a boy with red hair was standing on a rooftop nearby. His voice was calm but it made the two sand shinobi freeze. Suddenly he looked at Sasuke and asked for his name.

The Uchiha was about to answer when he was interrupted by Sakura's soft and quiet voice "It is appropriate to say your name first"

Her two friends looked at her and then at the red-haired boy, afraid that he was going to do something, but he only looked at her with passive eyes. "Gaara" was his only response. His teammates were surprised that he bothered to answer the pinkette.

"Uchiha Sasuke" the dark-haired boy decided to be just as laconic.

Naruto, feeling left out, pointed at himself and shouted "I'm Uzumaki Naruto"

Gaara didn't say anything and just looked at the pink-haired girl. She held his gaze for a while and then bowed politely "I'm Haruno Sakura, welcome to Konoha." She then took Sasuke's hand in her own, pulled Naruto by his shirt, and entered the weapon shop, leaving the three sand shinobi behind.

Kakashi was standing in Sakura's kitchen. He was holding two sheets of paper in his hand. '_They aren't on the training ground and they aren't here. That's new, they are always in Sakura's house if they are not training._' He sighted and took one cookie from a plate that was left on the table. '_I better go and check some other place._'

The jonin made some hand signs and reappeared outside of Naruto's window. He entered the small apartment and saw his two genins and their pink-haired friend. They were asleep on the floor, with Sakura in the middle of her male friends. The three of them looked so calm and innocent, cuddled together like puppies. Around them were scattered weapons and sharpening tools, and Sakura was loosely holding a book.

Kakashi went to Sasuke and shook him lightly, and then did the same to Naruto. The two boys woke up and sat up, feeling a little disorientated at first. They saw their sensei and stood up.

"What are you doing here Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto whispered, trying not to wake up Sakura.

The man showed them the forms he was holding "We need to talk about something serious."

"Let's go to the balcony" said Sasuke and opened the sliding door that was leading outside.

Naruto took Sakura in his arms carefully, and put her on his bed. He covered her with a blanket and then joined his sensei and teammate.

"The Hokage informed me that this year the Chunin exam will be held in Konoha. I signed you up, but if you think you are not ready, we can cancel. Think about it." explained the silver-haired man and gave the sheets of paper to the genins.

"Oooh, I am more than ready!" Naruto exclaimed excited.

Sasuke just smirked and nodded his head in agreement.

"I knew your response was going to be like this. Ok, tomorrow be at the Academy at 7 in the morning." Kakashi instructed the boys and then with softer voice told them "I can't tell you what exactly the format of the exam is, but don't forget that you are a team, help each other and show to all of the shinobi present, that even if it's just the two of you, you are more than a worthy opponent."

Kakashi's words made Naruto's and Sasuke's eyes lighten up with motivation and determination.

"We will show them the best team in Konoha!" yelled the blonde with wide grin on his face.

_**~The same night~**_

"So the exam is tomorrow?" Sakura's calm voice was quiet. She was walking between her boys, as they were going to eat some ramen for dinner.

"Yes Sakura-chan, tomorrow is our chance to show how strong we have become! We can become a chunin. That's one step closer to Hokage!" Naruto's eyes became dreamy.

"It's not going to be so easy Naruto. Get a grip of reality. You didn't even pass the real Academy exam, why are you so sure you will pass this one?" Sasuke asked irritated at his teammate's carelessness for something as serious as the Chunin exams.

"Oh, don't spoil my fun Sasuke! And I am stronger than I was back then! I will pass for sure!" Naruto replied loudly.

Sakura giggled at them and then took something out of her pocket. She looked at the items in her hand, smiled and then stopped walking. Sasuke and Naruto immediately stopped as well and turned to their female friend.

"Is something wrong, Sakura?" Sasuke's tone was noticeably worried.

"I want to give you something" said the girl and extended her hand towards the two boys. "It's for good luck and to remind you of me when you are on missions." Her fingers were clutching two silver chains. Both had one kunai as a charm. On one of them, next to the kunai was a small fox, and on the other was a round charm shaped like the sharingan.

Naruto took the one with the fox and hugged Sakura. "Thank you so much Sakura-chan!"

Sasuke put his around his neck and then he also embraced the pinkette and whispered his gratitude in her ear.

The pink-haired girl smiled brightly at them. She took them by the elbows and started walking again.

"Let's go and eat so you have more time to sleep, you will need all the energy you can get."

"Yes Sakura-chan! I can eat twenty bowls of ramen. I'm so hungry" Naruto laughed and patted his belly.

"You are going to pass out from overeating, dope"

"What did you say?! Teme!"

**AN: Please review and share your opinion on the chapter with me. **

**So we met Gaara and his siblings, I couldn't think of a way to include Tenzo in here (sorry ****silverwolfigther00****) he will probably be in the next chapter :).**

**If you have any questions, leave them in your review (it doesn't matter if they are connected to the story :) )**

**I have one for you guys: What is your favorite anime?**

**Thank you for reading! :)**


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